“Last year I discovered a new and unknown world, that of pro-ana and pro-mia websites, and I accepted the idea that we are all, in some cases involuntarily, a little guilty so I started an online petition to close such websites. I was perfectly aware that half of the people would have supported me and the other half would have blamed me. And that is what happened in the beginning. But then many understood that I acted with the best intentions and that I truly wanted to use the power of the fashion world to help badly influenced people who would end up in self-destruction. Who would end up dying. This has caused me a lot of trouble and a flood of insults. But I haven’t stopped and we have reached now 12,000 signatures and I will soon launch a provocation to stop such sites. I will ask for the help of the users themselves. We will set up a chain ‘against’, since the law is unable to close such sites. Taking the blame is a necessary deed and finding a solution is even more important.”
Franca Sozzani is known for being outspoken. In the past she has used her position as editor of Vogue to address important issues within 't'industry', but I have to say I understand what she is saying above (have a quick read) and I think its great that she uses her voice to highlight such issues such as eating disorders amongst models - HOWEVER, does the fact that her magazine only uses extremely thin models not make this a bit......well......
It's all fine and well to talk about the spread of anorexia, and the fact that it exists within the industry but what about the part that the media has to play in this? It's confusing because as someone who has suffered from eating disorders in the past - I can honestly say that watching thin girls in magazines and such is only a very small part of it. EDs are mainly about control.
It might be more productive to not only use your voice to protest about such sites but to also use your position to promote healthier models in your magazine. Still, at least she is doing something - you don't see the like of Anna Wintour speaking about models eating habits in Vogue US do you?
Unless it's to promote insane diets. I didn't post this at the time because, well, we are not Americans and we have our own Vogue closer to home - UK Vogue. Vogue US got in a whole heap of trouble recently when it published a story by a mother whose 7 year old daughter, Bea, was diagnosed as obese. Nothing unusual there but it was the story of how the mother tried to reduce her daughters weight.
It's certainly a complicated issue as I would understand the dilemma of wanting your daughter to be healthy but I think this went a little overboard and the reaction of people also went a little overboard.
“It is grating to have someone constantly complain of being hungry, or refuse to eat what she’s supposed to, month after month,” she writes, also noting that it was “exhausting managing someone’s diet, especially when her brother has completely different nutritional needs.”
'Weiss writes: “ ‘I’m not a different person just because I lost 16 pounds,’ [Bea says]. I protest that indeed she is different. At this moment, that fat girl is a thing of the past. A tear rolls down her beautiful cheek. ‘Just because it’s in the past,’ she says, ‘doesn’t mean it didn’t happen.’
Bea lost 16 pounds and was rewarded by dresses for her weight loss but....was the damage already done? There was, as I mentioned, a lot of serious discussion concerning eating disorders and about the damage the pressure of dieting could have placed on the child. But consider the statistic that I just read online - 1 in 3 US kids are obese. That is insanity.
It seems that the debate over weight - within or outside of the fashion industry is unlikely to go away anytime soon. Its just sad that we still have to discuss it like this - ranging from one extreme to another.
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